Every week, when John Williams sends me his Old Men of the Mountain column, he writes a note in his email — sometimes humorous, sometimes philosophical.

Last week, he wrote about all the Christmas preparations he and his wife, Marlene, had underway.

I’m ashamed to say, my email in return said this:

“Dear John, I’m glad you are keeping Christmas. And I hope The Enterprise is a recipient of one of your cards. I love them. My husband and I have sort of given up on Christmas. It seems pointless to have a tree with no one home to gather around it … I get so discouraged writing about Covid closures and deaths every day.”

John sent me, in return, this wonderful reminiscence:

“Lissa, I was sorry to read your response to the cover letter for the OMOTM and your desire not to have a tree this year, but could understand why.

“We will always have a tree as long as we are able. When we were just married and our first Christmas was coming up, we did not have much money. However, we went shopping anyway for what gifts we could afford, or make.

“We were at Topps in Albany, which was on Broadway and not far from Montgomery Ward. We did not have any decorations yet for a tree and in Topps both my wife and I spotted this little decoration of a Santa in a clam shell. At that time it was under a dollar, and we think it was just about 50 cents.

“After purchasing the Santa in a clam shell, we now needed a tree. This was a forgone conclusion because all we had to do was cut one down from the wood lot on the farm. We did that and had some ornaments given to us, and we made some but we hung the little Santa in a clam shell at eye level and right in the middle of the tree.

“We have done this every year since; the Santa is placed smack-dab in the center of the tree.

“When our first born was much older one day she said to my wife, ‘Mom why do you guys stick the tacky little Santa in a clam shell on the tree right in the middle every year? You know it is a very tacky ornament, so prominently displayed.’

“We told her the reason for the Santa in a clam shell being so important to us, and it will be displayed in every tree as long as we are able to have one.

“Right then and there, my wife and I decided to leave that ornament to our first born in our will.

“This will be the 68th year Santa in his little clam shell will be out of his box and hanging on our tree, presiding over ornaments by Christopher Radcliff, homemade ornaments, antique ornaments, other collectable ornaments, ornaments made by the kids when they were young, a real eclectic collection.

“The clam-shell Santa has gone from a pauper to a king in these 68 years.

“Love, John”

John’s story made me remember my first Christmas with my husband 43 years ago when we, too, had little money to spare. My husband was a cub reporter making $100 a week and I was working on a Ph.D. with a teaching fellowship that paid $3,000 a semester.

But we got a small, ragged tree from a street-corner vendor. We carried our tree home to our spare apartment and decorated it with paper ornaments I’d folded and figures made from cornhusks. The future stretched before us, and we had hope in our hearts.

John’s missive renewed that sense of hope. We’ve decided to get a tree this year after all. We hope to make it another 25 years, just like the Williamses.